On Sunday 14th August almost 5000 people from across Birmingham came together in a call for peace for our city.

In partnership with West Midlands Police and Birmingham City Council the event was a response to the riots that shocked the city and the tragic deaths of three young men in Winson Green.

People from different cultures, backgrounds and faiths stood united under the banner – United Birmingham: One City, One Voice for Peace.

Tariq Jahan, the father of two of the murdered men whose emotional appeal helped calm tempers in the aftermath of the tragedy said, ‘Seeing the community together gave him hope’.

Giving young people a voice

Young people from all different backgrounds were also given the stage to express themselves with their own prayers and words of hope. Brad Lindo, 21, expressed how upset he was about the riots: “After seeing the events of last week at first I was confused, then I was briefly angry, but more than anything I was upset that our young people, who have so much talent and potential would resort to violence and things that should not define our generation”.

Working together for the city

West Midlands Chief Constable Chris Sims described the response as overwhelming: “Officers have been overwhelmed by the support shown by the public and it felt a million miles from the debates apparently raging in Westminster.”

Birmingham City Council Leader, Mike Whitby said: “We are working together, politicians, faith leaders, community leaders – the desire for normality in this city is tangible.”

Prayers for the city

City faith leaders including Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Sikh and Hindu faiths were also united in messages of hope and called for peace in Birmingham’s communities. The Bishop of Birmingham encouraged the crowd to seek a new future of hope:”United across Brminhgham we together seek a new framework of moral discipline and education, we seek a a new future of shared hope in the enormous creativity and generosity right across the communities of our city of Birmingham.”

The Bishop of Birmingham, David Urquhart reflects on what it would mean to live in a kinder city as part of his Easter 2011 message.

Bishop David Urquhart:

“For this city to remain a haven of refuge and safety, a centre of creativity and commerce and a meeting place for faiths and cultures it needs people who are committed to being good news, people who gossip hope and live friendship and hospitality.

Connected through acts of kindness

Acts of kindness are the nerve cells of this city. Kindness creates connections in a way that nothing else can. Kindness builds community and ends loneliness and isolation. St John says that “Perfect love casts out all fear.” Kindness is the opposite of fear and it speaks of the love God has for every one of the 1 million people who share the city of Birmingham and call it home.

The Birmingham City Mission offer help and support to the marginalised and those experiencing a crisis

Their resource centre is running out of supplies and food donations are urgently needed – can you help?

BCM are committed to helping people in need with emergency food parcels. This is now becoming difficult as the needs in Birmingham are growing and supplies are running out. Donations are received all year around from schools, businesses and individuals.

Nutritional essentials

The charity organisation gets alot of tinned baked beans, mixed fruit and chopped tomatoes but don’t get a lot of coffee, cornflakes or sugar. BCM are committed to helping people a balanced diet in their food parcels, however essentials are running out really quickly.